


Jumping to Conclusions

by Blazonix



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: International Fanworks Day 2017
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-16
Updated: 2017-02-16
Packaged: 2018-09-24 20:50:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,245
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9786023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blazonix/pseuds/Blazonix
Summary: Shiro makes (in his mind) a reasonable conclusion.For International Fanworks Day 2017!





	

His house is huge and elaborate, seemingly built in the middle of nowhere with dozens of servants living inside it. It’s peaceful, and he wants for nothing.

He hates it to be honest.

It’s not the can-get-anything-he-wants part, so much as it’s the fact he doesn’t even know a single servants’ name. Even though they raised him, they avoid dealing with him more than they have to. He makes up nicknames for them inside his head.

At first he thinks nothing of it. It’s all he knows after all. Then he sees his father for the first time and puts two and two together. After that awkward encounter he starts thinking the servants resent him for being forced to take care of him.

It’s not until he starts eavesdropping on hushed conversations that he realizes he’s wrong.

“We must take care,” a servants whispers, “he is the son of Ryoma who is the—”

Another servant shushes him.

“ _Big Cheese_ of Hoshido,” the servant finishes with a grimace.

Short-fry was about to say something else, he’s sure of it. He dashes back to his room to pace and think. It takes days of recalling past conversations and piecing things together before he gets it. When he does, he drops to the ground in disbelief.

“My dad’s a mafia boss!”

He rushes for his room and opens a box kept in the corner. He pulls out one of his most prized possessions and looks at in wonder.

It’s the first book in a series called, “Something Something Reborn.”

It’s amazing, the likes he’s never seen before. Someone managed to draw on every single page, inked so masterfully. It’s also incredibly bizarre—he can’t understand half of it. He only understands some of words and has to guess at the rest. It's not the unusual lettering that gets to him; it's the _concepts_.

Everything from the technology to the weapons and the strange houses make him thirst for the outside even more. He has no idea what it’s like out there, but if it’s anything like these drawings!

He grabs a scroll that’s been stuffed in the box and looks at it in excitement. It’s a poorly made drawing of him covered in Flames, and he starts bouncing in excitement. He always wanted Sun Flames!

His bouncing dies down when he realizes he’ll probably have Sky Flames instead. He carefully rolls up the scroll and looks at the books with a thoughtful expression.

How he obtained the art book series is something of a mystery even to him. He was walking through the garden one day when a giant box landed on top of his head.

There may have been a portal involved along with hysterical screaming, but he’s not entirely sure if that happened or not. He’d been diagnosed for a concussion because of, well, a giant box landing on top of his head.

The servants had tried to take said box away from him, and that had gone about as well as telling him he couldn’t train in the rain. Since he could totally train in the rain, he could definitely keep the box that tried to assassinate him.

So he kept it even if One-eyed kept trying to pry it from his fingers. During their epic struggle, he tried to tell her “over my dead body” only to say “over my dad’s dead body.” A slip of the tongue from the concussion, he insisted later.

His determination paid off, he found his treasure, and the rest is history.

“Alright, Reborn,” he says opening a book, “teach me how to be a _Boss_.”

Two weeks later, some intense studying—with notes! His teachers would be amazed—and he’s pretty sure he’s got it. His precious books have some slight wear, but it’s nothing he’ll lose sleep over. Becoming a Boss worthy of his father’s legacy is his goal after all.

 _Step one_ , his notes read:

_Become both physically and mentally strong! A Boss must have the ability to lead the fight head on while protecting those around him. Be able to beat up everyone, and keep your dying resolve! Also, a Boss should have access to their Sky Flames._

He strikes out the last sentence with a frown. As far as he can tell, these so-called “Flames” don’t exist. He’s asked, but the servants always give him these _looks_. He almost drowned himself trying to activate them, but not even a semblance of power showed up.

_Step two:_

_Gather Family members and allies. Gather Guardians to help you lead, and forge connections with others to make your rule go smoother. Having others to rely on is critical. Having friends to follow you is even more important._

He taps the paper, frown turning into a wistful smile. He has plenty of servants, and he’s pretty sure his dad has even more on the outside. While he’s not too sure about more servants, Guardians— _friends_ would be awesome.

_Step Three:_

_Save the world. Inherit the seat, but not the sins of the past. You are the Boss. You make the rules, and you are going to make the world a better place. Destroy any mysterious evils that appear, be they rival Families, ghosts, time-travelers, or undead creatures!_

He nods to himself and folds his arms in thought. It sounds easy enough on paper, but there’s no world-saving to be had in this dull place. No, from what he understands, the outside is the world that needs to be saved.

He’s pretty much confirmed the existence of monstrous creatures from overheard conversations, an evil that his father is supposedly fighting. He thinks his dad left him here because of it, to protect him and to not be a burden…

He thinks of the old man’s assassinated sons, Tsunayoshi’s normal life away from his father, and the bloodiness that is the Mafia. He finally feels like he understands where his father is coming from.

The thing is though he’s no longer a little kid. He no longer needs to be here. He can wield his naginata better than anyone here, and none have bested him for months now. He’s stuck, unable to improve his abilities, and that’s no way for a Boss to be.

“Let’s get this show on the road!” He decides.

He’s going to show his dad that he’s ready to start training for his eventual succession. He’s going to get strong enough to save the world and, hopefully, manage to win over some allies. He’s going to make Reborn proud of him!

Er, wait, he meant his dad. He’s going to make his dad proud of him!

-*-

The first time Corrin sees Ryoma’s son is on the battlefield. It’s not an unusual thing lately, but it’s certainly a unique…experience.

“With my Dying Will!” Shiro shouts.

Corrin watches Shiro somehow thrust his naginata forward, impaling a bandit, only to jerk backwards to impale another bandit on the non-bladed end.

 _How?_ Is Corrin’s first thought followed by, _a naginata isn’t meant to be used that way_.

Shiro makes an annoyed expression before trying to shake the bodies off his weapon. It doesn’t work, and Shiro ends up smacking another enemy with the screaming man attached to the front of the weapon.

“Bet Mukuro never had this problem,” Shiro grumbles, still trying to dislodge both bodies.

Corrin lets out an inappropriate giggle before rushing forward to help. Best get Shiro looking more like a Hoshidan warrior before Ryoma arrives.


End file.
